While in India a few months ago I had a chance to visit the remarkable Hindu temple, Akshardham. Akshardham is an interesting temple in that it not only boasts some of the most magnificent sculptures and detailing seen anywhere, but it was also built in less than 5 years and constructed using methods that date back thousands of years. In fact, the entire temple is built without the use of steel nor concrete. Akshardham officially opened in 2005.

It was then that I pondered the construction of another temple, La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. This church also lays claim to an outstanding level of detail and yet it has been under constuction since 1882 and is not expected to be complete until 2026.

Though both edifices are host to an impressive level of detail, how is it that Akshardham was completed in a fraction of the time compared with La Sagrada Familia?

To give readers a quick glimpse at the intricacies, here I present a few photos of each monument.